POSITIVE LUXURY
INTRODUCTION
Positive Luxury are a luxury organisation who support brands in accelerating their adaptation to the new climate economy. Positive Luxury power the Butterfly Mark, the luxury industry’s leading sustainability certification.
Needle & Thread were awarded the Butterfly Mark in 2019, as one of the youngest brands to gain the certification. We are assessed by Positive Luxury every other year using their ESG+ assessment framework. This framework has been designed for the specific social, environmental, and material risks of the luxury industry and considers over 150 factors across 75 categories. The assessment is tailored to the specific impacts of the luxury industry from climate, waste and carbon management to animal welfare, biodiversity, and circular economy.
Positive Luxury are a luxury organisation who support brands in accelerating their adaptation to the new climate economy. Positive Luxury power the Butterfly Mark, the luxury industry’s leading sustainability certification.
Needle & Thread were awarded the Butterfly Mark in 2019, as one of the youngest brands to gain the certification. We are assessed by Positive Luxury every other year using their ESG+ assessment framework. This framework has been designed for the specific social, environmental, and material risks of the luxury industry and considers over 150 factors across 75 categories. The assessment is tailored to the specific impacts of the luxury industry from climate, waste and carbon management to animal welfare, biodiversity, and circular economy.
Needle & Thread’s Sustainability Purpose Statement:
Needle & Thread is a contemporary womenswear brand that epitomises romance and modern elegance, with a focus on beautifully crafted designs.
Needle & Thread is a contemporary womenswear brand that epitomises romance and modern elegance, with a focus on beautifully crafted designs.
Responsibly sourced
Our primary goal is to enable all women to look and feel beautiful in exquisite, yet accessible, artisan styles. Needle & Thread offers every woman the chance to own an investment piece that’s truly timeless; our designs can be worn for years to come. This longevity not only offers exceptional value for money, but is a core aspect of our approach to sustainability, ensuring the products stay in circulation to reduce our impact on the environment. In addition, our collections are manufactured using at least 75% responsibly sourced materials. By 2024, we commit to increasing this to 90%.
Our primary goal is to enable all women to look and feel beautiful in exquisite, yet accessible, artisan styles. Needle & Thread offers every woman the chance to own an investment piece that’s truly timeless; our designs can be worn for years to come. This longevity not only offers exceptional value for money, but is a core aspect of our approach to sustainability, ensuring the products stay in circulation to reduce our impact on the environment. In addition, our collections are manufactured using at least 75% responsibly sourced materials. By 2024, we commit to increasing this to 90%.
Design
A joyous, celebratory brand, Needle & Thread is a go-to for every special occasion. We handcraft transformative, ethereal styles to ensure women feel confident and beautiful at any event. With a globally recognised brand DNA, our creative narrative is consistent and reliable, so our consumers from all over the world can trust our feminine and flattering collections.
Size Inclusivity
Size inclusivity is also a core brand value, and we offer sizing from UK4-24, providing extensive access to high-quality, luxurious style for all sizes. Our collections are lovingly designed in-house, with every artwork individually hand-drawn for all sizes - from the opulent all-over sequins to the elaborate embroideries - bringing a level of specialist craftsmanship at a volume that’s unprecedented in the fashion industry.
Giving Back
We’re proud to partner with a number of inspiring organisations that enable us to give back effectively. The charities that we support are aligned with our core brand values: enhancing the lives of women and mothers, nurturing and inspiring the young and protecting the environment. Charities we support include The Princes Trust, Save the Children, World Land Trust and Women for Women.
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):
We have aligned our sustainability efforts and our Positive Luxury assessment with 3 of the SDGs that we feel are most relevant to Needle & Thread:
- Goal 3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages
- Goal 5 - Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
- Goal 12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
We have aligned our sustainability efforts and our Positive Luxury assessment with 3 of the SDGs that we feel are most relevant to Needle & Thread:
- Goal 3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages
- Goal 5 - Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
- Goal 12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
Materials:
- We are striving to reduce our reliance on virgin materials by developing our core fabric and components in more responsibly sourced options. To find out more about our efforts please see our Responsibly Sourced Fabrication and our Responsibly Sourced selection.
- Our sustainability commitment is that by 2024 up to 90% of our collection will be made with responsibly sourced components and materials.
- All of our suppliers who produce our products made from recycled materials are all audited under the Global Recycle Standard (GRS).
- We are striving to reduce our reliance on virgin materials by developing our core fabric and components in more responsibly sourced options. To find out more about our efforts please see our Responsibly Sourced Fabrication and our Responsibly Sourced selection.
- Our sustainability commitment is that by 2024 up to 90% of our collection will be made with responsibly sourced components and materials.
- All of our suppliers who produce our products made from recycled materials are all audited under the Global Recycle Standard (GRS).
Packaging:
- We have removed all virgin plastics from our supplier shipping packaging. We use polybags that are made from 100% post-consumer waste.
- We are currently developing a more responsibly sourced packaging option for our e-commerce orders, due to launch in 2023.
- We have removed all virgin plastics from our supplier shipping packaging. We use polybags that are made from 100% post-consumer waste.
- We are currently developing a more responsibly sourced packaging option for our e-commerce orders, due to launch in 2023.
Community Give Back:
- We believe in supporting our community and encourage our Needle & Thread team to participate in community give back opportunities arranged by the business.
- In 2019, we undertook a successful canal clean up in Hackney Wick.
- In July 2022, we took park in a beach clean-up in partnership with Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) on Brighton Beach.
- We believe in supporting our community and encourage our Needle & Thread team to participate in community give back opportunities arranged by the business.
- In 2019, we undertook a successful canal clean up in Hackney Wick.
- In July 2022, we took park in a beach clean-up in partnership with Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) on Brighton Beach.
Charity:
- We are proud to partner with a number of charities, including The Princes Trust, Save the Children, World Land Trust and Women for Women International. To find out more information please see our Giving Back page.
- We are proud to partner with a number of charities, including The Princes Trust, Save the Children, World Land Trust and Women for Women International. To find out more information please see our Giving Back page.
Needle & Thread Employee Social Responsibility:
- We have a Whistleblowing Policy, rolled out to our UK and India teams, and across our supply chain.- All employees have access to an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support with personal and professional problems that may be affecting home or work life, health and general wellbeing.
- We hold regular workshops and training sessions to educate and support the team on social subjects such as
o Unconscious bias
o Menopause
o Diversity and Inclusion
o Mental health and anxiety management
o Sleep therapy
o Nutrition
- We have set sustainability KPIs for employees across the whole business to ensure that we are all striving towards the same sustainability goals, which are formally reviewed on an annual basis.
- We have a Whistleblowing Policy, rolled out to our UK and India teams, and across our supply chain.- All employees have access to an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support with personal and professional problems that may be affecting home or work life, health and general wellbeing.
- We hold regular workshops and training sessions to educate and support the team on social subjects such as
o Unconscious bias
o Menopause
o Diversity and Inclusion
o Mental health and anxiety management
o Sleep therapy
o Nutrition
- We have set sustainability KPIs for employees across the whole business to ensure that we are all striving towards the same sustainability goals, which are formally reviewed on an annual basis.
Needle & Thread Supplier Social Responsibility:
All Needle & Thread suppliers annually sign a Code of Conduct, Restricted Substances List and an Anti-Bribery policy. To find out more, please view our Supplier Social Responsibility page.
All Needle & Thread suppliers annually sign a Code of Conduct, Restricted Substances List and an Anti-Bribery policy. To find out more, please view our Supplier Social Responsibility page.
